Oct 032012
 

 

So many good things appeared in September that Mark Penfold couldn’t bear to cut the list down to the traditional 10. Here are 11 top utilities for building on the web

It’s a real mixed bag this month. IDEs, prototyping tools, visual effects, slide shows … there doesn’t seem to be any obvious connection. But the tendency for tools to incorporate some degree of playing-field levelling remains evident.

For example, a mobile framework that enables you to ‘code once’ – and in JavaScript, no less. Prototyping tools with components for multiple platforms, IDEs that facilitate rather than getting in the way of fluid development. An important goal for each of these projects is to iron out some of the web’s wrinkles so you can focus on solving real problems not re-inventing the wheel.

Stand-out performance though, has to go to Microsoft for WebMatrix 2. Not just because it’s a strong piece of kit but because it puts so much of the PC giant’s other output into sharp relief. And yes, IE, that still means you.

MORENew tools for web design and development: September 2012 | Feature | .net magazine.

 


Oct 132011
 

 

 

Then Yegge switches gears to talk about Google.”That one last thing that Google doesn’t do well is platforms. We don’t understand platforms. We don’t ‘get’ platforms,” Yegge wrote. “Google+ is a prime example of our complete failure to understand platforms from the very highest levels of executive leadership (hi Larry, Sergey, Eric, Vic, howdy howdy) down to the very lowest leaf workers (hey yo).” The G+ platform, Yegge wrote, is a “pathetic afterthought” and Google lacked an API at launch.

Google’s biggest blunder, he added, is that it didn’t emulate Facebook’s plan of building “an entire constellation of products by allowing other people to do the work.”

via Google Engineer Accidentally Posts Rant About Google+.

Oct 042011
 

 

 

We’ve seen WordPress do some amazing things, and almost every one of us has used Google Maps to explore the world around us. But Gabe Morton-Cook is taking these two elements and rolling them into one beautiful website, called Travelogic.

This project is intended to bring together three of my passions: Travel, Photography and Interactive Design/Development, as well as to be a method for sharing our travel stories with friends and family.

via This website is a beautiful mashup of WordPress, Google Maps and photography – The Next Web.

Sep 202011
 

 

 

Prototyping tools can be restrictive and it’s becoming more important that designers know how to code up their concepts, so Leisa Reichelt organised a workshop teaching how to build prototypes in HTML and CSS. Here Anna Debenham summarises what she taught on the Code Fitness day

If you already know how to build a basic web page, you probably won’t learn anything here. But if you don’t, or your knowledge is from back in the days of table-based layouts, this will give you a good grounding in building prototypes in HTML and CSS.

via Building prototypes in HTML and CSS | Tutorial | .net magazine.

Sep 162011
 

Designing a great user interface can be a challenge, even for the most seasoned designer. Countless factors need to be taken into consideration and the difference between a good UI and a great one often boils down to paying close attention to the smallest details.

When undertaking such an important and often complex task, it’s helpful to have some handy resources for both education and inspiration. We’ve put together a list of some of our favorites below. Since we can only scratch the surface of the wide variety of UI design resources available, we invite you to share yours in the comments.

via 9 Essential Resources for User Interface Designers.